PLANE MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING ON HIGHWAY
The Associated Press
4/27/2004, 9:40 a.m. ET
TUNICA, Miss. (AP) — A single-engine plane carrying FedEx cargo made an emergency landing on a highway early Tuesday, and a passing truck knocked off a wing but no one was hurt, officials said.
The single-engine turboprop Cessna was on a flight from Memphis, Tenn., to Monroe, La., said Sandra Munoz, a spokeswoman for FedEx in Memphis, Tenn. It landed on a four-lane stretch of U.S. 61, where the truck hit it.
Munoz said the two-person crew was unharmed, and the Tunica County sheriff's department said there were no reports of injuries on the ground.
The cargo will be sent by truck to Memphis and will be flown to Monroe later Tuesday, Munoz said.
The plane experienced engine trouble about 35 miles south of Memphis, but the cause of the problem wasn't immediately known, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Christopher White said.
It was operated by Baron Aviation under contract with FedEx, Munoz said. The plane is what the shipping giant refers to as a feeder plane, which is used to make short deliveries to areas that might not be serviced by a full-size jet.
A person answering the phone at Baron said officials were not immediately available for comment.
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